Nine BSF personnels injured during mortar firing practice

Nine Border Security Force (BSF) personnel were injured during an early morning mortar firing practice on Tuesday at the Kishangarh field firing range near Jaisalmer in Rajasthan along the Indo-Pak border.

The incident took place at about 8:30 am when troops were participating in a firing exercise and a 51mm mortar fell short of its target at the forces’ firing range in Kishangarh. While speaking to DH, BSF PRO Rajasthan, DIG Ravi Gandhi said, "Soldiers were immediately given first aid by an available doctor and evacuated to Ramgarh BSF where again they were given first aid. Subsequently, they were shifted to Jaisalmer. As per report 6 of them suffered minor bruises. BSF has also evacuated all of them to Jodhpur by helicopter and will be treated at MDM hospital".

This is the third such incident reported this year involving mortars at a firing range of the BSF that guards India's border with Pakistan and Bangladesh. A bigger and more powerful, 81 mm mortar, was accidentally blown up in January this year when BSF personnel were practising at the firing range. Two soldiers had lost their lives in this accident and three more, including an officer, were injured.

Another accident took place in March when a 51 mm mortar blew up, injuring four personnel. A few days later, six men of the border guarding force were injured in similar circumstances during mortar firing exercise in Jharkhand's Hazaribagh.